Protective device.



E. E. F. CREa'GHTQN, PROTEQTIVEDEVICE. APPLICATION FILED APR. I8, :912.

151 9 1,5711 Patented m 18,1916.

Fi 2 $9,, I v mnmmms aqmmmm Witnesses: inventor":

. Ci 4; v Eimef El. Crsightan,

I His, miss-mag TON, a citizen. of the United States, resi fipplica'ion filed 18,

Tocll whom it may concern Be it known filia I, .u C 1iat Schenectady, county of Schenectady, of New York, have invented certa n new r Ml useful Improvements in Pro icciive Devices, of which the following is spccificacioii.

The present invention relaces arc-e2:- tinguishing clcvices such as lightning an rosters in which the are is extinguished by the action electromagnetic or magnetic forces.

The obiecbof my invention s to provide an arrester of the are extin shing; type which is an. improvement on those hcresoi c c known in the art and which is 1 bleaiiii positive in its operation to extin msh overv'oltage (iisc of consicl ble eneri y, particulaily direct current circuits, such as ei'nplcyccl on electric railways and Si llfil circuits.

In accordance i ith my invention a simple, compact apparatus of novel con-- structien oroviclecl in which the are formed is driven in by the magnetic field surrounding the arc raiher than being blown outwardly the usual practice. The are driven'n a narrow chime and lengthened and furth: cooled 21ml subdivided by a grid of metal plates in a novel and inq rcvecl manner.

The iaov'elfeatures of my in vention will be pointed oiit with greater pzi-vriiciilarity in llhc claims appeiulecl hereto.

7 Figure l is a perspective view of the arrester with the outer casing remo 2d; Fig, is a cross-sectional view taken through the magnet in the central part of the device; Fig. 3 is a perspective VlBW of she sul'ssiantially li-shaped magnet which forms the framework of the apparatus; Fi 4iillustrates one of the walls of she arc chute and the arcing electrodes; and 5 is a VlEBW of the ouhsicleof the arrester assembled. for service As shown best in Fig. 3, my arrescer comprises a magnet 1 which may be the elec tromagnetic type buowhich is PET/ rably a DLZ'DliLIQQIllI magnet substantial C i/lcuntecl on the ends or poles of l are pole tips 2 of the recoil 5 1 tending into the U-shapecl magnetiocloswre. The pole tipsare separable from is magnet but are shown attached thereto by nuts and bolts 01' other suitable means 3 as'besb sh o in Fig. 2: These pole tips are shown beic M fierifl HO. $33,66

or widening near a ion alhougli not as will apthe arc to o inwardly 0 (1 two plaics real \e reuractcry filia- 30 Main and sepaii a divergarc ch ie. The

i in width at the I so view siauazecl. in the region of aiest inccnsity of" magnetic field. 1' o rhcse electrodes co: ast 0%? copper, or other suitable Well ma ine, 211g lLdiLEillLl, and their aiijacent ends are out at an angle which is about degrees from clie vertical, so that the are "when formed travels along the diverging extreinii-ies the electrodes and finally laterally along the exposed sides of the elec- )(lBS as far as he width of the arc chute v. .ll permit thereby avoiding burning at the tips of the electrodes. During this interval, as the ends the are are being extended, she arc is being cont i'mally bowed out, or lengthened. by the cbic field into the constricted fairshapecl chute. It is finally blown against an arc grid, which consists of transverse metallic plates 8 mountecl in corrfigaiions upon the inner surface of a semicylinclrical refractory shell 9 which is supported by the yoke of the magnet as shown in Figs. 1 and 2. This grid cools, subdivicles, and also deflects the vapors of the arc stream. This process takes place of course practi- Cally instanfianecusly and the combined effect of cooling and lengthening of the arc in she constricted arc chute iisually results in its rupture. However, if not already rup cured in the chute it is ruptured by the cooling effect of the grid when issuing from. the clnn'te. shell by firmly fastened to the magnet frame rap l0 nuts and bolts 11. The are As best shown in Figs. 1 and 2', the

of the device.

accommodated in held in position.

I so construct my device that the arcing across the electrodes 6 and 7 occurs in the greatest n'iagnetic field intensity. This magnetic field is maintained in a constant direction' by the permanent poles of the magnet 1, which are of unchanging polarity and if one electrode is always positive and the other electrode is always negative, the arc discharge always occurs in the same direction, that is, from the positive electrode to the negative electrode; Having a fixed direction of magnetic lield or a fixed polarity of the magnet, and a fixed direction of arc discharge it will necessarily follow that the arc will move in a definite direction. I, therefore, maintain the relation between the poles of the magnet and the arcing electrodes such that when looking through the magnetic field or be tween the'poles in the direction of the center of the magnet, the poles and electrodes are situated in clockwise rotation as follows, south pole, positive electrode, north pole, negative electrode. With this relation fixed, any are discharge across the electrodes is always moved by the magnetic field of the magnet inwardly through the ,arc chute and over the cooling plates, thus enabling the construction of a very compact and rugged device, the extinguishing and cooling means can be mounted within the magnet inclosure. There is another important advantage gained in blowing in rather than blowing out the arc discharge with the relation of magnet poles and electrodesas specified, which is as follows: By blowing-in the arc discharge, the arc, considered as a flexible conductor, sets up a magnetic field in the fame din ction as the field produced by the magnet, thereby strengthened the magnet by the accumulative or remagnetizing effect. In the blow out type of device the magnetic field produced by the arc discharge opposes the magnetic field of the magnet and thus weakens the magnet field at each discharge By the remagnetizing efi'ect which I have found takes place, I am, therefore, able to maintain the magnetic field of coi'istant strength and intensity. The upper end of the arc chute is provided with a prot ctive relj'ractory cap 12 shown broken away in Fig. 1, below which is a vent so as to allow gases ,to be sucked into the arc chute by the magnetically expelled are stream. For this purpose channels 14. are provided in the top of the arc chute plates. C'pportunity is thus afforded for a complete c'" *ulation of gases within an inclosing ca ng. When thus asscn'ibled the apparatus is placed in the metallic cylindrical housing or casing 13 as shown in Fig. 5, connections being made to the line to be protected hy conductor 15 and to a grounded rcsi.:;ance 1G by conductor 17.

a small space and rigidly What I claim new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is,-

1. In an arc-extinguishing device, plates of refractory material forming a constricted arc chute, oppositely-disposed electrodes near one side of said chute, metallic plates situated transversely to said chute at its opposite side, and magnetic means for blowlng an arc formed across said electrodes into and through said chute and across said plates.

2. In an arc-extinguishing device, a magnet nearly closed upon itself and having reentrant pole tips, plates of refractory material forming a constricted arc chute between said pole tips, and arcing terminals in said chute in the vicinity of maximum field intensity.

3. in an arc-extinguishing device, a substantially U-shaped magnet having reen-' trant pole tips, walls of refractory material between said poles constituting a constricted arc chute, arcing teri'ninals in said chute, a refractory plat-e supported by the yoke of said magnet opposite said chute, and a plurality of metallic plates spaced apart in said plate whereby the arc vapors are cooled and t'leflected to extinguish the arc.

i. in an arc-extinguishing device, a substant'iall y U-shaped ma gnct having inwardly turned pole tips, porcelain plates supported by said poles between said pole tips to constitute an arc chute, oppositely-disposed electrodes inv said chute, a semi-cylindrical cooling and deflecting plate supported on the inner side of the magnet yoke opposite the chute, a vent for the chute on the side opposite the deflecting plate, and a protecting casing inclosing said apparatus.

In an arc extinguishing device, a permanent magnet nearly closed upon its and having reentrant pole tips, plates of refractory material between said poles forming a narrow constricted are chute, cooperating flat arcing electrodes having diverging ends mounted at one end of said'chute, a semicylindrical plate supported by the yoke of said magnet at the opposite end of said chute .i'or cooling and deflecting an are, said plate having an inner corrugated sin-face, a plurality of metallic plates mounted within the corrugathms of said plate and transverselv to said chute, a Gas vent for the chute on tire side opposite d' plate, and a protective casing inclos' r said apparatus.

(5. in an arc "1 device. a magnet nearly closed I and lni ving'rentrant pole tips; walls of refractory mate' rial hetween said poles forming a long constricted arc clnite, arcing tcrn'zinals' in said chute, a corru ted refractory plate supnor ted hy the volcc o l said magnetopposite sans chute, a plurality of metallic plates mounted in the corrugations of said plate, a gas vent tor the said chute on the side op posite said refractory plate, and a protectiie casing inclosing said apparatus.

7 An arc extinguishing device comprising a substantially U-shaped magnet of unchanging polarity having mam-1m: pole tips, Walls of refractory materiei between said pole tips forming a constricted arc chute a positive and a negative electrode oppositely disposed and mounted at one end of said chute and between the poles of said magnet, means for breaking up the arc and cooling the same at the other end of said chute whereby when an arc is formed across said electrodes the are i drawn in by said magnet toward the center of the magnet through said chute and over said cooling means. 1

8. An arc extinguishing device comprising plates of refractory material forming e,

constricted arc chute, cooperating electrodes mounted at one end of said, chute, a semicylindricel refractory plate mounted at the opposite end of said chute and corrugated on its inner surface, metallic cooling plates mounted in the corrugations of said surface and transversely to said chute, a. substantially e -shaped magnet of unchanging polarity encircling said plates and'heving its poles adjacent and oppositely disposed to said electrodes, and connections between said electrodes and an electric circuit such that any arc formed at said electrodes is die fiected by said magnet;

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this li'tli day of April, 1912.

E. F. CEEIGHTGN "Witnesses EENJAMIN Z6, HULL,

.emm (krone. 

